Frederick I think we all made pokers in metal work with the 3 twists half way down,I progressed to a bedside lamp made out of copper tubing soldered beautifully together for my pass in metalwork at Lea Village sec mod.Great Days edmund

Hello Fred and EdmundWe had to go to Windsor Street School for metal work. I made a fishing rod rest with the three twists and a pastry cutter.Great days, why do they not teach pupils these things today. Perhaps health and safety. Is that why they stopped the useof the cane. Remember Edmund, touch your toes now and knees right back.Hows the walking stick going Edmund.Best wishesGerald.

Finding it hard to keep my balance with one stick tomorrow I will fetch the papers using 2 might find it easier.after tuck the papers under my arm.Starting to bend down a little bit more now which helps looking after the delphiniums which are looking beautiful .Nice to converse Gerald

I remember the metal work classes at Alderlea. Mr Alen, a bit of black smithing, whichI preferred or more accurate stuff with Mr Graham. All the formative skills I picked up way back are useful for me to this day. Mind you, with the lack of small engineering firms these days, Precision engineering is the way to go.

I know we had an anvil in the metalwork room I ran into the pointed end of it at the end of class when the teacher said you can go now. And I am sure there was a forge in that room. If not how did we warm the metal up. Those pokers would comin handy for the wood/multi fuel burners now.

When I was at Dennis Road, there was a metal forge and a little furnace for melting aluminium, we forged a screwdriver blade in the metal forge then used the furnace to melt aluminium for the handle which we poured into a handle mould with the blade set into it. Then we turned the handle on a lathe. Of course they were rubbish and most of them were probably used as weapons.

Our Metalwork Teacher was a Mr Schofield was quite strict but a decent enough bloke always wore one of those Brown Cow Gowns. Like many others in the early 50s there was no protective clothing and I seem to remember getting my Mum to make me a sort of an apron from a piece of sacking material. I remember making a brass shoe horn and a trowel. We forged the handle and tang and brazed and riveted it to the blade. We also did a bit Copper Hammering I may be wrong but i think we softened the copper in acid solution before the Hammering.I suppose like many others we had to line up in the playground and then march into the school building. On one particular day this Mr Schofield was on playground duty and picked out one of the lads for messing about during the line up. The lad in question was a a bit of card but on this occasion he was completely innocent. Protesting his innocence The lad was promptly marched by Mr Schofield in to the Metal work room for 6 of the best. The lad was having none of it and I can still see Mr Schofield chasing the lad around the benches waving his stick above his head all to the great amusement of the rest of the school. He never caught the lad who by chance lived just opposite the school gates over the road he ran and escaped into to his house.